TinyStepper
Blonde toddler in an apron showing paint-covered hands over sponge prints and handprints

Scented Playdough Spa

Make batches of homemade playdough with different scents — lavender, peppermint, lemon — for an olfactory sensory session.

Activity details

19m–3y15 minslowindoorFlourFood ColouringSaltWater

Instructions

Get ready
  • Make basic playdough: 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, 2 tbsp oil, 1/2 cup water
  • Divide into 3-4 batches and add a different scent to each
  1. Make basic playdough: 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, 2 tbsp oil, 1/2 cup water
  2. Divide into 3-4 batches and add a different scent to each
  3. Suggestions: lavender oil, peppermint extract, lemon juice, cocoa powder
  4. Add food colouring to match the scent: purple for lavender, green for mint
  5. Present the scented doughs: 'Smell this one! What does it remind you of?'
  6. Let your toddler squish, roll, and mould each one
  7. Talk about the smells: 'This one smells like biscuits! This one smells like the garden!'
  8. Mix scents together: 'What happens when we combine lemon and lavender?'

Parent tip

Set out flour and food colouring before inviting your toddler in so the first minute feels smooth.

Proud child holding up a painted sheet covered in bright handprints and splatters

What success looks like

Messy hands and a child who doesn’t want to stop. The artwork doesn’t need to look like anything — the process is the point.

Make simple playdough (flour, salt, water, oil) in separate batches, adding a different scent to each: lavender oil, peppermint extract, lemon juice, vanilla, cocoa powder. Your toddler squishes, rolls, and moulds each batch, discovering the different smells. The olfactory dimension adds a sensory channel that is almost always overlooked in play. Scented playdough turns a familiar material into something completely new and engages the limbic system — the emotional centre of the brain.

Why it helps

The NHS Best Start in Life programme recommends sensory play as a valuable way for toddlers to explore the world, noting that it supports language development, cognitive growth and fine motor skills. The olfactory system has a direct neural connection to the hippocampus (memory) and amygdala (emotion), making scent one of the most powerful sensory triggers for learning and emotional regulation. Scented playdough engages this underused pathway while providing the familiar proprioceptive benefits of moulding and squishing. The multi-sensory combination of smell, touch, and sight creates richer, more durable memory traces than any single-sense activity.

Variations

  • Add texture: dried herbs (rosemary), oats, or rice to different batches for combined scent-and-texture play.
  • Use the scented dough to make 'perfume' — stamp it onto paper to leave a scented print.
  • Create a 'smell test' blindfold game: can your toddler identify each dough by scent alone?

Safety tips

  • Use food-grade scents only — essential oils should be diluted and used sparingly (1-2 drops per batch).
  • Supervise to prevent eating — the salt content makes the dough unpleasant but not dangerous in small amounts.
  • Check for allergies to specific scents, especially peppermint and lavender oils.

Want to try another?

Cloud Dough Bakery

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